Yasuo
by Elizabeth Allen
Summary: Sakura is in love. But much to Kakashi's dismay, it isn't with him. REWRITING


That man… he'd been everything to her. She would take a thousand knives in the back to protect him. There was nothing she wouldn't do for someone who loved her so much.

And that man, he loved her. He wouldn't leave her for anything. He wouldn't stand for any of her insecurities; he made her stronger. He gave her the love she needed, and that love was warm, gentle when need be. The times when he was tough on her, she was grateful.

But he wasn't real anymore. He was gone in a wisp. Kakashi had seen it all.

That man had disappeared from her grasp in an instant, and just as quickly, she'd vanished in a poof.

Kakashi had been pouncing across roofs before he stopped to look into her apartment window. She and that man were panting, love tiring them out, the sheets on her bed contorted to fit the shape of their bodies in ivory wrinkles. If he wasn't ready to fall on his knees and surrender, he'd have found the primitive sight almost beautiful. She was happy this way, and when she was happy, there was nothing more full of life, more gorgeous than she was

That man… his name… what was his name?

Ya… Yasuo. That was it.

Yasuo from… God, why was he trying to remember? He had to find where she'd disappeared to. It was some obscure village miles away… if there was a village or even a Yasuo to begin with.

'_Focus on Sakura, Kakashi. No time to deal with '_what ifs_' right now.' _His mind was growling in frustration.

Everything was so broken right now. How does a man evaporate from a woman's arms? He'd been too real and around for too long to be genjustu. He didn't move like a shinobi. Who was Yasuo?

"_I don't know, Sakura. He's sketchy," Kakashi said casually, drinking his soda. Diners weren't his style, but it was a chance to be with _her_. His eyes glanced at Naruto who was challenging Yasuo to a game of pinball. He and the blonde were the only ones able to make the outing. Sasuke claimed he was busy, as did Sai and Yamato… conveniently._

"_You're being unreasonable. Stop bugging me about this." She gave her boyfriend a loving look before returning her gaze back to Kakashi. "He's the most wonderful man I've ever met. No one could even try to put up an act like his personality if they wanted to." A happy sigh escaped her lips._

_Kakashi's eyes sorrowfully found the surface of the table. They didn't move till Naruto trudged back, Yasuo behind him, grinning like the stupid idiot Kakashi knew he was._

When Kakashi finally found Sakura, she was sitting underneath a cloudy sky next to the waterfront of one of the training grounds. He wrapped his arms around her naked body and enveloped her with his crouching form.

There was a moment of silence before she started crying.

"I can't find him," she managed between sobs. "I don't know where he went, I can't… what do I do?" Her pained whine made his heart ache unbearably. The hurt he felt for her loss…

How did it feel to lose something so right? Was it like failure? Was it like death? Who could harm her like this? These tears freefalling from her eyes… it was…

He couldn't describe anything anymore because his mind became fuzzy with all his desires and needs and his unrequited love for the most innocent person he would ever know. Before he realized it, he kissed her. He didn't know what to do either. He didn't know what to say. All he knew was that if she loved Yasuo, he, Kakashi, would love her from afar. He would be the second man to protect her, and that thought made him sadder than he ever knew he could be.

As she pulled away, she looked up at his face. She knew he was more heartbroken that she was, and she loved him at that moment. She accepted his imperfections at that moment. And for once, Yasuo was the second best man the world would ever know _at that moment_.

She snuggled into his body further and shivering, finally noticing the pinching cold. He took that as his cue to take her home.

"We'll find him, Sakura. I promise you." He rose steadily, carefully, going to great lengths just to make sure that his precious cargo wasn't shaken in any way. "We'll find Yasuo."

.end.


End file.
